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November 2013 MinneCulture Archives

Germaine Gemberling is a singer-songwriter born and raised in St. Paul. She began studying music a child, and grew up in the midst of the indie-rock explosion that brought us the Replacements, Husker Du, Jayhawks and Soul Asylum. She fronted her first band at 17—the all-girl punk band SMUT—who signed to Spanish Fly/Twin-Tone Records in 1992. A few years later Germaine left the Twin Cities for the beauty and solitude of northern Minnesota. She performs with her folk-rock band, Junkboat, as well as acoustically with Rich Mattson and Ol’ Yeller. Her most recent release, Generator, was recorded at Sparta Sound in 2013.

A performance inspired by Africa and hosted by Ms. Kenna at Patrick’s Cabaret in Minneapolis. This independently produced show featured spoken word, live music, dance and more, with a focus on the African diaspora. The theme “Africans in the Snow” comes from poem by Louis Alehemayu, who was inspired by a photograph of two Somali women in a snowy Minneapolis parking lot.

Fresh Fruit: 35 Years of Queer Radio, an audio documentary by Dixie Treichel

Fresh Fruit: 35 Years of Queer Radio is about the history of Fresh Fruit, that first aired on KFAI on May 11, 1978 and has been live on air weekly with the same name and format for 35 years. The piece is an overview of Fresh Fruit from 1978-2013 including preparations to go on air in 1977 by the original Fresh Fruit collective, a group of activists living in a queer hippy commune in Minneapolis.

Some archival audio is used courtesy of The Jean-Nickolaus Tretter Collection in Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Studies

Altruism is proving to be something of a natural resource here in Minnesota, particularly in the Twin Cities. Since 2008, Minneapolis-St. Paul has come in first for rates of volunteerism per capita; and overall, has consecutively landed in the top five states. In this audio documentary, KFAI’s Michelle Alimoradi explores what it means to volunteer in Minnesota. Mary Quirk, executive director of the Minnesota Association of Volunteer Administration (MAVA), and board member Judy Russell provide in-depth analysis of three local nonprofit organizations that rely heavily on volunteers. Jay Haapala, volunteer director at the Minnesota Children’s Museum, talks about service-learning opportunities for high school and college students. Secondhand Hounds founder Rachel Mairose recounts “pro bone-o” services from the animal rescue’s incredible volunteer pool. And One Brick offers a new way to connect volunteers with organizations.